Another question regarding VAT, is the 10-12 percent you get back only for Chanel purchases due to the admin fee? Or would the amount vary between brands? I was online at Harrods and it seems that they deduct the 20% for items to ship outside of Europe. This wasn't on a Chanel purchase,however.
Duty | Tax | Customs for International shopping {VAT refund}
- Thread starter ivivi
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Different brands have different admin fee and some brands in some countries will charge an additional admin fee for cash refund and this is why at some places you are expected to decide your refund mode upfront. On top of this, the cash refund agents at some airport may also charge an additional commission for the refund.
Usually if it is a direct purchase requiring a shipment out of the country or zone, you may then get 100% true tax refund.
Just FYI, I left CDG on 6/5 and received all Chanel refunds to my card by 6/15. One refund came as early as 6/10. I also got items from Hermes and received those refunds on 6/16. Definitely did not take as long as I had expected! From my experience, Premier Tax is a little bit faster than Global Blue. The Chanel boutiques use Premier and the department stores like Galeries and Printemps use Global Blue (along with LV, Hermes). HTH!
You can always take the risk of not declaring, but it's the same situation if you go to Switzerland or some other places and have an expensive watch. They may question whether you bought it during your trip and may ask you to prove if not, if it looks too new. I've seen folks bags tossed by customs and not a pretty sight at all.
I've been way over the allowable amount and haven't had to pay--bought Chanel in Italy, bought 18k gold in Greece over the allowance. Customs person, said enjoy!!!!
is there any thread about people's experiences entering the US with expensive goods purchased abroad? just wondering how often people are asked to pay. i will declare, although the two times i declared expensive purses when entering the US, i wasn't asked to pay the duty. just wondering if i got lucky (i have global entry, btw), or if this is typical.
I wanted to share my recent experience with the VAT Refund in EU. I made a number of purchases in Paris using my credit card and elected to have the VAT Refunds applied to my card. I had refunds due from Global Blue (LV, Valentino, Tag Heuer, etc.) and Premier Tax (Chanel). I flew out of Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam on June 1 and had my vouchers validated/stamped at the Customs location beyond the security checkpoint since the line at Customs before security was very long all of my purchased fit in my carry on. Since a Global Blue counter is located right next to Customs, I was able to hand deliver my Global Blue vouchers and the Global Blue VAT Refund was credited to my card on June 25, so in about two and a half weeks. Since there was no Premier Tax counter past security, my Premier Tax vouchers were dropped in the Premier Tax box next to Customs and I did not receive the Premier Tax VAT Refund credit to my card until September 11, so about 13 weeks. I believe part of the delay in the Premier Tax VAT Refund was due to the fact that my purchases were made in France, but my voucher was dropped in the box in Amsterdam.
The amount of my VAT Refunds was about 13.5% of my purchases (after accounting for the exchange rate). My overall savings on all of my purchases averaged 30% after accounting for the lower cost (and no sales tax), exchange rate, VAT Refund and customs tax. On my Chanel purchases, the savings averaged about 25%. I also used a card with no foreign transaction fees and a 1% cash back reward.
FWIW, I did declare my purchases upon arrival into Atlanta, and they used discretion and didn't charge the full customs tax amount. However, due in large part to the delay because of process involved with declaring (it was very disorganized), we missed our connection (we had a two and a half hour layover, but our flight out of Amsterdam was also a bit late leaving). Just something to keep in mind.
The amount of my VAT Refunds was about 13.5% of my purchases (after accounting for the exchange rate). My overall savings on all of my purchases averaged 30% after accounting for the lower cost (and no sales tax), exchange rate, VAT Refund and customs tax. On my Chanel purchases, the savings averaged about 25%. I also used a card with no foreign transaction fees and a 1% cash back reward.
FWIW, I did declare my purchases upon arrival into Atlanta, and they used discretion and didn't charge the full customs tax amount. However, due in large part to the delay because of process involved with declaring (it was very disorganized), we missed our connection (we had a two and a half hour layover, but our flight out of Amsterdam was also a bit late leaving). Just something to keep in mind.
thanks funbagz! do you know what the custom duty rate is for leather bags? i tried to look it up on the cbp site, but got completely lost amongst all the chapters about raw meat. lol.
for whatever it is worth, i declared my mulberry as $2000 before (probably a little undervalued), along with lots of cookies and wine, and they waved me on.
for whatever it is worth, i declared my mulberry as $2000 before (probably a little undervalued), along with lots of cookies and wine, and they waved me on.
U.S. Customs tax is exempt for the first $800 ($1600 for married couples). The first $1000 after that is taxed at 3%. Anything above that is taxed at 6% (for handbags...the rate varies depending on the merchandise). The customs agent told me that the rate charged over that $1000 threshold varies depending on your arrival airport, but I'm not sure how reliable that information is. I also heard that the amount you declare should not include any VAT Refunds. Hope that helps!
So the cash refund is better than cc refund? I bought my chanel in France and decided to get the refund on the credit card... I flew back home from Heathrow. Im confused on how they use the exchange rates and how it works. :/ .
I bought YSL bag in paris last month. I'm from US and the exchange rate on my CC was very good.. A lot better than cash i brought from bank here.
The refund was super fast too.. I got it validated in Switzerland, it was done electronically, so i dont hv to mail anything. I ended up saving 40% after tax
The refund was super fast too.. I got it validated in Switzerland, it was done electronically, so i dont hv to mail anything. I ended up saving 40% after tax
The exchange rate on the cc was 1 eur to $1.09, and cash exchange was 1eur to $1.15